Handling complaints

The complaints procedure is an important QA aspect. It helps to identify the elements that can hamper the quality of education. ES follows an internal complaints process when dealing with complaints – this is described in the figure at the bottom of the page.

All learners are made aware of the TU Delft Terms & Conditions for Contract Education at the time of enrolment. Article 13 of these Terms & Conditions gives information on the procedure that applies if learners wish to express a complaint about one of our products, the ES organization, or a ES staff member. The complaint should be submitted as soon as possible, and no later than four weeks after the completion of the course (Article 13.1). Learners must do so by stating in writing the reasons for their complaint, providing additional information such as the name and address of the complainant, description of the conduct about which the complaint is being made, and the name of the related course (Article 13.2).

The Administration Team receives complaints from learners enrolled in ProfEd courses via the functional mailbox or via the dedicated feedback form on the TU Delft Online Learning website. The Administration Team determines which department should handle the complaint or escalates to the relevant Course Team. The Administration Team also advises the complainant about the expected response time.

The edX Support Team receives complaints from learners enrolled in a MOOC via the dedicated online form available on third party platforms. Depending on the nature of the complaint, the Learning Experience Team in charge of moderation will either directly address the complaint or escalate to the Course Team. They will also record the frequency and type of complaints in a feedback form; such information will be used to inform future course evaluation. Additionally, Learning Developers will record complaints that required an escalation to the Course Team in a dedicated repository, which is shared with the QA Officer.

In case the learner is not satisfied with the proposed solution, they may contact the Central Complaints Desk, which will escalate their complaint to the ES Executive Director.

Should the nature of the complaint be a dispute on assessment results, Course Teams unable to resolve this can escalate the case to the ES QA Board for a binding settlement.

On a quarterly basis, an overview of all complaints is shared with the ES Director of Education and the QA Board, who provide advice on the actions to take (if any) to improve ES products and services.